Baruch Alumnus Santiago Mueckay ’13 Receives NYC Urban Fellowship

NEW YORK, NY- May 21, 2014 – Recent Baruch College graduate Santiago Mueckay ’13 has been awarded a New York City Urban Fellowship. Santiago, who earned an undergraduate degree in political science, is one of 25 individuals who were selected to the 2014-2015 Class of Fellows.

The Urban Fellows Program is a highly selective, nine-month fellowship which combines work in Mayoral offices and City agencies with an intensive seminar series that explores current urban issues impacting public policy. Program participants are diverse and come from all over the country to work in New York City. The nine-month Fellowship begins September 2, 2014 and ends May 9, 2015. For their services, the program provides a stipend of $30,000.

After participating in an extensive interview process, New York City Urban Fellows are placed at an array of agencies across the City where they learn about public policy through a hands-on approach.

Santiago, originally from Ecuador, came to New York City at the age of 10 not speaking a word of English. His entire family moved to NYC in 2001, and Santiago says he’s called New York his home ever since.

After graduating from Baruch College, Santiago wanted to explore other opportunities so he could continue to grow professionally. “I decided that I wanted to stay in NYC for a couple more years and felt that the NYC Urban Fellows Program was a perfect match,” he said.

Santiago has not been assigned the agency where he will work, but he hopes to join a department that supports his passion. “I am very passionate about immigration reform as well as community partnerships so my top two choices are the Office of Immigrant Affairs and the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit,” he said. “I haven’t really experienced local and citywide government professionally. I would love to learn about the way that an entity as large and important as city government can function and how I can be an effective member of it.”

While attending Baruch, Santiago said his most memorable experience was running for Student Government and becoming Vice-President of the Undergraduate Student Government.

“The experience taught me a lot about teamwork, commitment, and completely enhanced my experience at Baruch,” he said. “There are so many motivated and brilliant students at Baruch. I am proud to call myself a Bearcat.”

Santiago hopes to carry his political success from Baruch College to the state or national level.

“I’ve always been interested in politics,” he said. “I graduated with a Political Science degree and knew that was going to be my path from the moment I set foot in college. I would love to eventually run for office and be able to implement positive change in people’s lives.”

###

About Baruch College:Baruch College is a senior college in the City University of New York (CUNY) with a total enrollment of more than 17,000 students, who represent 160 countries and speak more than 100 languages. Ranked among the top 15% of U.S. colleges and the No. 5 public regional university, Baruch College is regularly recognized as among the most ethnically diverse colleges in the country. As a public institution with a tradition of academic excellence, Baruch College offers accessibility and opportunity for students from every corner of New York City and from around the world. For more about Baruch College, go to http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/.